Georgia Traffic Laws: Points, Tickets, License Suspension and DUI

Yes. DDS describes its point system as ranging from 2 to 6 points per conviction (a first hands-free phone violation is 1 point). A driver with 15 points in a 24-month period will have the license suspended. Points are also assessed against Georgia residents for out-of-state violations that would carry points in Georgia. Drivers under 21 are suspended for any 4-point violation, and drivers under 18 for 4 or more points in 12 months.

15–18 mph over: 2 points; 19–23 mph over: 3 points; 24–33 mph over: 4 points; 34 mph or more over: 6 points. No points are added for speeding less than 15 mph over the limit, for 'too fast for conditions,' or for non-Georgia residents.

Points count toward suspension when 15 accumulate within a 24-month period.

Two options use a DDS-certified defensive driving (driver improvement) course. Points reduction: after completing the course, a driver can submit the original certificate to DDS to reduce points by up to 7, once every 5 years; this does not undo a points suspension already imposed. Zero-point order: if the course is completed after the violation and before the case is resolved, the court can report the conviction with no points assessed, once every 5 years. The conviction still posts to the record, and neither option avoids a mandatory suspension.

Traffic citations are resolved with the court handling the citation. If a driver fails to appear in court or respond to a citation, the Department of Driver Services (DDS) suspends the license 28 calendar days after receiving notice; resolving the citation with the court before that date means no fees are due to DDS. Most Georgia courts send releases to DDS electronically.

Check your status through DDS Online Services (Check License Status), the free DDS 2 GO app, or by phone at 404-657-9300; signing in shows your suspensions and step-by-step reinstatement requirements. Reinstatement fees (mail or online / in person): Failure to Appear $90 / $100; child support non-compliance $25 / $35; first DUI (21 and over), first no-proof-of-insurance and first points violation $200 / $210; second no-proof-of-insurance and second points violation $300 / $310; third points violation $400 / $410; Super Speeder $50 after paying the $200 Super Speeder fee. Pay online through Online Services, by mail to the DDS Validation Unit (check, money order, cashier's check or credit card authorization form; full payment only), or in person with cash or card (no checks). Fees can vary by record.

Traffic citations are handled by the court listed on the citation. Failing to appear in court or respond to a citation leads to a DDS failure-to-appear suspension; it can be avoided by resolving the citation with the court before the suspension's effective date.

DDS suspends licenses for refusal of a chemical test, failure to appear or respond to a citation, non-payment of child support, non-payment of the Super Speeder fee, safety responsibility, and medical reasons, and must suspend after convictions such as DUI, vehicular homicide or serious injury by vehicle, fleeing police, hit and run, racing, driving uninsured, and driving while suspended. Drivers under 21 are also suspended for reckless or aggressive driving, speeding 24 mph or more over, passing a stopped school bus and any 4-point offense. Reinstatement fees are generally $210 ($200 online or by mail), or $310/$300 for some repeat suspensions.

0.08 grams for drivers 21 and older; 0.02 grams for drivers under 21.

DUI penalties include fines up to $1,000, jail up to 12 months, and mandatory license suspension. For drivers 21 and older, a first DUI within 5 years brings a 12-month suspension, but the driver can apply for reinstatement after 120 days by completing a DDS-approved DUI Alcohol or Drug Use Risk Reduction Program and paying the reinstatement fee. A limited driving permit may be available.

Georgia law requires drivers to submit to state-administered chemical tests of blood, breath, urine or other bodily substances. Refusing leads to a license suspension of at least one year, and refusal to submit to blood or urine testing may be offered as evidence at trial. Drivers may obtain additional independent tests at their own expense after submitting to the state's tests.

For license suspensions, DUI convictions are counted within a 5-year period (measured from arrest dates); a second DUI conviction within 5 years brings an 18-month suspension, with an ignition interlock limited permit available only after a 120-day hard suspension.

Some suspended drivers qualify for a limited driving permit, which restricts driving to purposes such as going to work, scheduled medical care or prescriptions, school classes, alcohol or drug treatment support groups, and driver education or required assessment and treatment programs. For a first DUI conviction, DDS must issue a limited permit to a qualifying driver ($25, valid one year).

Under Georgia's Hands-Free law, drivers may not hold or support a phone or stand-alone electronic device with any part of the body while driving. A phone may be used only with headphones, a wireless connection, or a phone holder or mount. Penalties: first conviction, 1 point and a fine up to $50; second, 2 points and up to $100; third or more, 3 points and up to $150.

A fourth or later DUI conviction within 10 years is a felony (1 to 5 years in prison, of which all but 90 days may be suspended or probated, and a $1,000 to $5,000 fine). The 10 years are measured from the arrest dates of the earlier offenses to the current arrest, and a nolo contendere plea counts as a conviction. Only convictions or nolo pleas on or after July 1, 2008 count toward the felony. A first or second conviction is a misdemeanor and a third is a 'high and aggravated' misdemeanor.

How long a DUI stays on the Georgia driving record was not found on an official page. For the criminal record, Georgia lets some people with misdemeanor convictions ask the court to restrict (seal) access to their criminal history, but the law excludes 'any serious traffic offense' under Article 15 of Chapter 6 of Title 40, which is the article that contains the DUI law. So a DUI conviction cannot be restricted under that process.

Yes, they are used. Georgia's 'Operation Zero Tolerance' is the state's high-visibility enforcement program against impaired driving, using concentrated patrols and sobriety checkpoints, and the state's highway safety plan calls for sobriety checkpoints in areas where impaired-driving crashes are common.